The present invention generally relates to chafers, or chafing dishes, wherein a heated water pan is supported below a food pan with a cover thereover. More specifically, this invention relates to an improved construction for the hot water pan of a chafer for efficiently maintaining the food pan at a desirable temperature using only a relatively small volume of water and a single source of heat therebelow.
Chafers are widely used by restaurants catering services, cafeterias, and the like, where food is to be kept warm for continuous serving to a large number of people, for example at banquets, hotel brunches, catered parties, etc.
Conventional chafers have a heated water pan that is supported by a base. A food pan, or tray, is supported within the hot water pan above the water level and typically has a peripheral lip that rests atop an outward flange or lip of the water pan. The lip of the water pan is supported by an inward support shoulder, or rib, of the base. Usually, multiple sources of heat, such as STERNO brand fuel, or wick-type devices, are ignited and reside below the hot water pan to heat the water. Conventional hot water pans have generally flat bottoms and the volume of water extends across the bottom at substantially the same depth throughout. For standard chafer sizes, about three gallons of water is the average amount to be heated and maintained for keeping the food pan warm, preferably at a temperature of from 140.degree. F. to about 190.degree. F.
Maintaining the water sufficiently hot to keep the food in the desired temperature range consumes significant amounts of fuel when numerous chafers are in use, such as at a hotel brunch, or the like, where many dishes are served. The use of multiple heating sources to heat these large volumes of water can be costly.
It is important that chafers are portable so that food service can be efficiently and quickly conducted remote from a kitchen preparation area. This may require that several chafers be transported from a kitchen in one part of a hotel, or restaurant, to a meeting or banquet room at another floor, building, etc.
The production of condensation from water vapor rising between the hot water pan and food pan is best treated if the water droplets can flow back to the hot water pan. It is therefore necessary for a hot water pan to account for the effect of water vapor condensing at the bottom and sides of the food pan.
Various configurations for the outer shape of the cover and base exist and can incorporate non-functional esthetic design appeal. Usually the food pan has a standard shape and is interchangeable with various base and cover designs as they might exist for the good reason of maintaining interchangeability. It would therefore be a mutual need for an efficient and improved hot water pan to be likewise interchangeable for use in various chafer configurations. As a result, an efficient hot water pan would be suitable for interchangeable use in plain-type institutional chafers, where esthetic appeal may not be required, and also for use in more fancy polished chrome, and stylishly shaped, chafers, such as found in hotel dining rooms and banquet facilities.
In accord with the interchangeable feature, a peripheral support lip formation, or flange, of a new hot water pan would be usable as a replacement for existing conventional type hot water pans that have the generally flat bottoms and require the inefficient utilization of large volumes of water.
Our invention satisfies the foregoing needs and goals of the food service industry by providing an improved efficient hot water pan capable of being supported on a chafer base for disposition below a food pan wherein, for example, only one can of STERNO-brand fuel is required rather than two cans, or more, that may be needed to heat conventional devices using the same capacity food pans. This desirable heating feature can be obtained by using a substantially smaller volume of water, but yet maintaining food at a "keep warm" temperature of from about 140.degree. F. to about 190.degree. F. during the cumbustion time of the heat source. Our invention also solves the water condensation problem by means of a water barrier construction at the lip of the hot water pan.
The inventive hot water pan also overcomes the prior art difficulties by the provision of a hot water pan that requires less than 25% of the hot water volume needed in conventional chafer constructions of equal food capacities.